Rotary bookcase.



m. 64l,6l4. Patented Jan. 16,1900.

0. M. STEBBlNS.

ROTARY BOOKCASE. (Application filed. Apr. 27, 1898.)

(No Modal.)

CHARLES M. STEBBINS, OF IVOLCOTT, VERMONT.

ROTARY BOOKCAS E.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 641,614, dated January16, 1900.

Application filed April 2'7, 1898. Serial No. 678,991. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, CHARLES M. STEBBINS, a citizen of the United Statesof America, residing at Wolcott, in the county of Lamoille and State ofVermont, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in R0- taryBookcases; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear,and exact description of the invention, such as will enable othersskilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention is an improvement in rotary bookcases; and the object of mysaid invention is to provide a bookcase of this character that can bereadily taken apart for convenience in transportation and in which thegreater part or body of the device is made up of boxes or compartmentsfor the books, which are utilized in shipping said books.

The invention contemplates a construction which retains the particulararrangement and many advantages of the rotary bookcase and overcomes thedifficulty which is experienced in handling or transporting suchbookcases and is yet simple and cheap in construction and durable inuse.

With the above objects in view the invention consists, primarily, of arevolving support, boxes stacked thereon in vertical series to formbook-compartments, and means for rigidly connecting the parts above therevolving support.

The invention further consists in the particular construction andarrangement of the parts, as hereinafter fully described,and moreparticularly set forth in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings,which form a part of this specification,Figure 1 is an elevation of a rotary bookcase constructed in accordancewith my invention. Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional View. Fig. 3 is adetail View of one of the boxes or book compartments and including aremovable cover which is employed when the box is used in shipping thebooks.

Referring more particularly to said drawings, A designates thesupporting-base of the revolving bookcase or cabinet, at the center ofwhich is rigidly secured a casting or forging B, presenting anupwardly-projecting pin 1), and upon this base the body or cabinetproper is pivotally mounted, the pivotpin 1) entering a metal socket cin the center of a board 0, which forms the bottom of the cabinet.

. In making up the cabinet proper to form the compartments for the bookstwo rectangular boxes D D are placed upon the bottom board 0 back toback, and upon said boxes, at right angles therewith, is placed a secondset of boxes E, and upon the latter a third set F, and so on until thedesired height of the cabinet is reached, the boxes of one set beingpreferably of different width vertically than those of the others toaccommodate volumes or books of different sizes. The fronts of the boxesare left open to form open compartments for the books, and it will benoted that the arrangement of said compartments is similar to that ofthe ordinary revolving bookcases, the spaces between the boxes of eachset providing compartments in addition to those formed by the boxesthemselves. In order to make a rigid structure of the body or cabinetthus formed, a top board H is placed upon the upper boxes and isconnected to the bottom board 0 by rods or long bolts I, which serve tofirmly clamp the boxes between said boards. These rods or bolts areadapted to be readily disconnected in taking the cabinet apart, and tothis end the top board H is provided with notches h, into which theupper ends of the rods or bolts are passed, permitting the heads to restupon said top board, while the lower threaded ends are passed througheyes 70 at the ends of metal bars K, extending across the under side ofthe bottom board, nuts i being turned upon the ends of the bolts.Washers z" are placed under the heads of the bolts to increase thesurface bearing upon the top board. The rods or bolts are located at thecorners of the cabinet in order that they will not obstruct thebook-compartments.

A cabinet made up as hereinbefore described not only forms a very simpleand cheap construction,but also provides for separating the cabinet intoa number of parts for convenience in packing for transportation, and inmoving a cabinet that is supplied with books it is not necessary todisturb the books that are in the boxes. To facilitate the handling ofthe boxes, they are provided at their ends with handholds M, and inconnection with the boxes I provide covers therefor, consisting of thinboards N, fitting the openings of said boxes and held in place by apivoted cross piece or strip 02-, the ends of which are passed intorecesses a in the top and bottom of the boxes.

From the foregoing description, in connection with the accompanyingdrawings, it will be seen that I provide a revolving bookcase or cabinetin which the body or greater portion is made up of aseries ofpacking-boxes, which not only facilitates moving the bookcase or cabinetitself, but also provides for readily and conveniently handling thebooks and protecting them in transportation. It is also apparent that asthe general appearance of the cabinet is that of an ordinary one itsreal construction and object thereof will be lost sight of, the boxespermitting of ornainentation to increase the attractiveness of thecabinet.

A revolving bookcase or cabinet constructed as hereinbefore describedprovides one that will be appreciai ed more especially by professionalmen the characterof whose work requires them to move very frequently orperiodically, and in addition to the many conveniences will save thewear and tear upon the books.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, an d desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

1. A knockdown rotary bookcase, comprising a rotatable supporting-base,boxes stacked upon the supportingbase in vertical series, the boxes ofeach series being disposed at an angle with respect to the boxes of theadjoining series and separated to form additional book-compartments, asshown; together with means for rigidly connecting the boxes to therotatable supporting-base, substantially as set forth.

2. A knockdown rotary bookcase, comprisin g a rotatablesupporting-base,boxes stacked thereon in vertical series, the boxes ofeach series being disposed at an angle with respect to those of theadjoining series and separated from each other to form additionalbook-compartments, as shown; a top board placed upon the stack of boxes,and rods eonv necting the top board and rotatable supporting-base toclamp the boxes between them, substantially as shown and for the purposeset forth.

3. A knockdown rotary bookcase, comprisin ga rotatablesupporting-base,boxes stacked thereon to form book-compartments at allsides of the case or cabinet and the boxes of each set or tier separatedfrom each other to form additional book-compartments in connection withthe adjoining sets or tiers; together with means for rigidly connectingthe boxes to the supporting-base, substantially as shown and for thepurpose set forth.

4. A knockdown rotary bookcase or cabinet, comprising a base, a board orsupport rotatably mounted thereon, a cross-bar attached to said boardand provided with apertured lugs or eyes, open boxes stacked upon saidsupport in vertical series, those of one series being disposed at rightangles to those of the adjoining series and the boxes of each seriesseparated to form additional bookcompartments, a top or covering boardplaced upon the stack and provided at its edges with notches, andthreaded rods or long bolts engaging the notches of the top board andthe eyes at the ends of the cross-bar attached to the bottom board, thesaid bolts having nuts screwed thereon, as shown and described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES M. STEBBINS.

\Vitnesses:

J. E. BULLOCK, AMOS A. WHITING.

